45 firefighters attended a huge fire which ripped through buildings at a Granby Industrial Estate on 5th April.

Baby & Me and JMK Auto Repairs were both damaged in the fire. It is thought that the fire started at Baby and Me UK which sells prams, cots, car seats and baby products.

A spokesperson for Baby and Me said: “It all feels like a bad dream, but we have just got to keep going. Business was booming and internet sales were going really well. We were hoping to open a shop in Weymouth soon. We’ve lost everything. All these piles of stuff were thousands of pounds worth of stock which was only delivered on Thursday morning. It’s going to take some time to build it back up again. We will have to start again somewhere else. I am grateful for everybody’s help and to the fire service for getting it under control. We don’t know how it started at the moment.”

Luke Bennett, owner of JMK Auto Repairs said that he hoped to be running normally again very soon. He said: “I was outside looking at someone’s car when he suddenly said: ‘Look at all that smoke. That’s when I turned and saw it. Our place is okay and we are hoping to start work again on Tuesday. The workshop has not been too badly damaged and from what I can see we should be okay to work next week.”

Mr Bennett added: “We still don’t know why it happened. I don’t know what they’ll do with next door, whether they’ll pull it down or what. We’ve just got a bit of tidying up to do today, but we want customers to know we will be opening.”

Craig Baker from Dorset Fire and Rescue Service’s group manager said: “An investigation has begun into the cause of this fire. This was a very severe fire, which crews managed to get under control by 6.40pm, although they will be remaining on scene for some time yet dampening down.”

Fire crews remained on the scene until Friday afternoon dampening down the area. An investigation in to the cause of the fire will be carried out.

The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 states that you:

‘must make a suitable and sufficient assessment of the risks to which relevant persons are exposed’

This means that all companies as a first point in their Fire Safety must complete a Fire Risk Assessment. This must be carried out by a competent person, who is trained to perform risk assessments.

North Wales Fire and Rescue Service have highlighted the dangers of carelessly discarded smoking materials.

The warning follows two smoking related fires within the space of a few hours in Denbighshire.

Firefighters attended a fire at a house in Llangollen on 27th March at around 6.30am after a resident smelt smoke coming from a lodger’s room. The fire had been caused by smoking material being discarded in a waste paper basket.

Firefighters also attended a fire caused in the same way at a semi detached property in Rhyl on the same day.

Gwyn Jones, Community Safety Manager for Conwy and Denbighshire said: “These incidents clearly highlight the dangers of not extinguishing cigarettes properly in suitable containers. It is vital to make sure all smoking materials are put out safely, especially before bed time. The best way to cut the risk is not to smoke indoors at all. Many smoking related fires happen at night when people fall asleep or smoke in bed and furniture or fabrics are set alight. Worryingly, research shows that smokers are less likely than non-smokers to have working smoke alarms which could alert them to the dangers and give the chance of escape.”

Firefighters are stressing the importance of having working smoke alarms at home after an elderly woman escaped from a fire at her home last week.

The fire is thought to have started when a spark from a log burner set a wicker basket alight.

Fire crews from Deeside, Mold and Ruthin were called to a fire near Llanarmon yn Ial in North Wales at around 12.15pm on Friday 9th March.

Andy Robb from North Wales Fire and Rescue Service said: “We were able to advise the occupier to make her way safely out of the property and she received treatment for mild smoke inhalation at the scene. The fire started in a wicker basket positioned near a log burner. A spark had ignited paper and logs in the basket. We would strongly advise against placing wicker items near a heat source – although they look decorative they can easily overheat or catch a spark and ignite. The combination of a working smoke alarm and a link to outside assistance undoubtedly saved this lady’s life and enabled us to arrive in time to prevent substantial damage to the property. The smoke alarms at the property had been fitted by staff from our fire and rescue service during a previous home safety check.”

Callum Faint from Cambridgeshire Fire and Rescue Service, said: “Although this was a small fire, because it was located in the stairwell it put lives at risk. Firefighters did a fantastic job on arrival, immediately setting to work rescuing residents quickly but safely, and extinguishing the fire. Modern buildings are designed to stop the spread of fire for around an hour, so if you are unable to escape from your flat the best thing to do is place towels under the door to stop smoke entering your flat, and going to a window or balcony to alert firefighters to your presence and wait for us to rescue you.”

A full investigation into the cause of the blaze is now being carried out.